Memorial fleet honors 343 firefighters killed on 9/11

Toddlers stood and saluted, shadowing their fathers in a cold September drizzle. They watched as the old Mercury crawled solemnly down the Jersey shore road.

That car, draped in black, was followed by a Mack fire engine, then a ladder truck. Spectators took off their hats. There was only light chatter, maybe a few sobs.

Virtual silence like whispered prayers welcomed Station 343. The station’s three-vehicle fleet comprises a memorial to the 343 firefighters killed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York City.

And that fleet led the 2011 New Jersey State Firemen’s Convention parade in Wildwood.

Station 343 is the brainchild of two South Jersey families steeped in firefighting tradition.

Joe Camarota, a veteran smoke eater who began his career with Whitman Square Fire Company in Washington Township, bought the engine.

The 1974 Mack, now “Engine 343,” once served the River Oaks Fire Department in Texas. Camarota said he was inspired in part to start a memorial station because the 9/11 tragedy directly touched his family.

His cousin, Frank DeMartini of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, was among the casualties. DeMartini helped colleague Pablo Ortiz rescue more than 70 people from the World Trade Center’s North Tower before both men perished in the eventual collapse.

DeMartini and Ortiz were featured in the Discovery Channel documentary “9/11: Heroes of the 88th Floor.”

“For me, it really hit home, to have a family member killed, and I wanted to do something not just for him, but for the other Port Authority officers and the firefighters,” Camarota said.

Soon, he decided to buy a command vehicle for Station 343. So he bought the 1987 Mercury (”Command 343”), once a command car for the Mount Penn, Pa. Fire Company.

Both brothers began their careers with Grenloch Fire Company, and both now serve in Blackwood Fire Company, in Gloucester Township.

The Camarota and Urso families have funded the purchase - and the ongoing maintenance and customization of the vehicles - all on their own.

They don’t receive donations. But both families say they aim to create a kind of mobile museum commemorating the unconditional devotion of their brethren.

Restoring the old vehicles has been a project in itself. Taking parts and equipment off, repainting them, repolishing, repairing, has been a painstaking process, they say.

The vehicles are kept in a South Jersey garage, out of the elements.

Among features to be added are the names of all the firefighters killed on 9/11, stenciled in gold leaf, on the panels of the Mack. Many names have been placed, but some polish is needed.

DeMartini’s name is to be placed on a rear compartment. A sign recovered from the actual World Trade Center site - which reads simply “World Trade Center Fire Command,” is placed on the very rear of the engine.

The patch for each of the New York fire companies involved in the 9/11 response is to be placed as a watermark on each compartment of the LaFrance.

The vehicles have been featured in many area parades aside from Wildwood’s - Washington Township’s 9/11 tenth anniversary memorial event, and parades in Clementon, Pine Hill and Clayton, to name a few.

And everywhere they go, they get a heartfelt reception, the families say. Perhaps it was the welcome in Wildwood, however, that touched them the most.

“It was really moving this year, partly because it was the tenth anniversary,” Pete Urso said. “But our group was privileged to lead the parade.

“It was just the reaction we got. We didn’t know whether to wave, to cry or just to sit there and stare.”